Graduate Certificate in Finance (ON HOLD)

Plan Description

The Graduate Certificate in Finance is a graduate certificate program designed to offer students the opportunity to gain a strong knowledge base in the area of Finance. Possible prospective students include those with a non-business undergraduate degree and those with a business degree in an area of business other than Finance. This program essentially allows students to take a short, focused graduate program in the area of Finance. This program is aimed at professionals that currently work in a Finance-related field looking to enhance their Finance knowledge, or for professionals contemplating a career shift to a Finance-related field. Profiles of potential students include: (1) An employee of a financial services company whose educational background is in an area other than Finance and who could benefit from some more formal Finance training; (2) An employee of a financial services company looking for continuing education classes demanded for a professional license or credential; (3) Someone currently employed in an area other than Finance that desires to update their knowledge portfolio for a career change; (4) Someone personally interested in having a better understanding of the many Finance issues that directly affect their lives.

For more information about your program, including your graduate program handbook and learning outcomes, please visit the Degree Directory.

Plan Admission Requirements

Application deadlines - Program is on hold and is not currently accepting applications.

Applications available on the UNLV Graduate College website.​

Admission requirements include an undergraduate degree with a GPA of 3.00 or higher, and either relevant work experience or a GMAT of 550 or higher. Relevant work experience is a minimum of 3 years experience in a relevant finance-related position. The determination of what is considered relevant work experience will be made by the Department of Finance Certificate Graduate Coordinator.

If desired, upon successful completion of the Graduate Certificate in Finance, students may apply for admittance into the Business Administration M.B.A.. General admission requirements for the UNLV MBA program include: an undergraduate degree with a GPA of 3.00 or higher and a Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) score of 550 or higher.

All applicants must review and follow the Graduate College Admission and Registration Requirements.

Students are accepted into a certificate program as described in the Graduate Catalog. The faculty and corresponding sub-disciplines and sub-plans within the described programs are subject to change at any time.

Plan Requirements

Total Credits Required: 12

Course Requirements 

Required Courses – Credits: 3

Complete the following course or an advisor-approved Finance course.

MBA 765 - Financial Decision Making 

Finance Courses – Credits: 9

Complete three 700-level Finance (FIN) courses.

Certificate Requirements 

1. Completion of a minimum of 12 credit hours.
2. A grade point average of at least 3.00 for course work required for the certificate.
3. With appropriate background the student may substitute an elective Finance class for MBA 765. What qualifies as an appropriate background will be determined by the Department of Finance Certificate Graduate Coordinator.
   
   1. An example of an appropriate background is having an undergraduate degree in Finance.
   2. Equivalent course work for MBA765 - Accounting Management is the completion of ACC 201 - Financial Accounting and ACC 202 - Managerial Accounting (or their equivalents) with a B average or better (B- grades are not acceptable).
   3. MBA 761 - Accounting for Managers and MBA 769 - Applied Economic Analysis are prerequisites for MBA 765 and can be waived with equivalent course work. Equivalent course work for MBA 769 - Applied Economic Analysis is the completion of ECON 261 - Principles of Statistics I and ECON 262 - Principles of Statistics II (or their equivalents) with a B average or better (B- grades are not acceptable).
4. Students with unsatisfactory progress toward the certificate requirements are subject to dismissal. A student with a grade of C or lower in any of the required courses will be put on probation for one semester. Conditions and deadlines for the removal of probation will be specified. Failure to meet the condition will result in separation from the program. A student with two grades of C or lower will be dropped from the program.
   

Plan Certificate Completion Requirements

The student must submit all required forms to the Graduate College and then apply for graduation in MyUNLV by the appropriate deadline.